PREPS PLUS BASKETBALL WEEKEND. - OPENING TIPOFF.

A program built to last

Catchings latest star in Neuqua's chain of command

February 21, 2003|By Marlen Garcia, Tribune staff reporter.

Bobby Catchings has the high-profile numbers this season for Neuqua Valley.

Next season, Kyle Carrabine is expected to take over once Catchings moves on to Eastern Illinois. The following season, Billy Parrish, now a sophomore playing on the varsity, likely will be the player to watch.

Neuqua Valley, ranked eighth at 21-2, has been one of the Chicago area's top boys basketball teams the last three seasons and could become a perennial power, in part because of these players. The girls basketball team already has carved that niche with a runner-up finish in the 2001 Class AA state tournament and a third-place showing in 2002.

Last season Neuqua Valley's boys became the eighth Upstate Eight team to go unbeaten in conference play since the conference was formed in 1964. The Wildcats advanced to a sectional semifinal last year and lost a sectional title game to West Aurora the year before.

"We call it running a program," Neuqua boys coach Todd Sutton said of his team's success.

His varsity program is in only its fifth season. The Naperville school, which opened in 1997, began fielding varsity team sports during the 1998-99 school year.

Sutton lost four starters to graduation last year but reloaded behind Catchings and senior Pat Brusveen, both of whom have the Wildcats on the verge of their second straight conference championship at 10-1. The team's only conference loss was to Waubonsie Valley (16-6, 9-2) last month.

Catchings, a 6-foot-5-inch swingman, leads the team with a 17.5-point scoring average to go with a .588 field-goal percentage. He hits nearly 50 percent of his three-pointers. Brusveen, a 6-1 guard, averages 15.4 points and is shooting 52 percent from three-point range. Neuqua Valley is 48-5 with Catchings in the starting lineup.

"I like to win for my teammates," he said. "We're not used to losing. For us to win, I have to do my part."

Catchings would score more, Sutton said, if not for the contributions he gets from Carrabine, junior Trey Snyder and senior Matt Newquist, all of whom average about 9.5 points.

"The only thing that holds Catchings back is me," Sutton said. "He doesn't get as many shots as some of the big shots in the state. But we wouldn't be 21-2 if Bobby averaged 25 points."

Neuqua's players will find out how they match up against top-ranked West Aurora next month if both advance to the East Aurora sectional final. West Aurora has been a powerhouse with few interruptions since the late 1920s.

Sutton hopes Neuqua Valley is on its way.

"We're going to lose a bunch of seniors again," he said. "But we expect to be just as good next year."